James sully



(No Model.)

J. SULLY.

GALVANIG BATTERY; No. 585,855. Patented July 5, 1897.

4504 LZOTI ring; 1), an ingot of aluminium fastened to the lowercnd ot' the. carbon pencil; 5, rubber of New York, have invented certain new and within the vessel; 11. I) ll,

UNITED STATES PATENT @rrrcs.

JAMES SULLY, OF NEW' YORK, LT. "f.

GALVANIC BATTERY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 585,855, dated July 6, 1897. Application filed February 16, 1897. Serial No. 623,749- (No model.)

To (all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JAMES SULLY, a citizen oft-he United States, and a resident of New York, in the county of New York and-State useful Improvements in Galvanic Batteries, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to produce a single-fluid galvanic-battery cell tl1at wi-1L maintain a nearly-constant electromotive force on closed circuit for several Weeks at a time and in a more simple and-economical form than closed-circuit batteries generally now in use.-- -I- attain this objeet by 'mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings,'in whieh. t.

Figure 1 isa side elevatio of one complete cell, showing the containing vessel, which is also the negative clcctrode,'exposed extcrnally to the air. a (tea-re three rubber knobs fastened to the bottom of the vessel to insulate it from 'anyi'hing it may rest .upon.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section oi theeelli 3 :3 are the walls of the vessel, one inch thick; 4, carbon pencil passing through the rubber ring; 6, copper cover of vessel supporting rubber ring; 7-, binding-post of negative vesset; S, paraffin insulation of the inner bottom of vessel; 9, mercury contained in the parailin'insulati'ou in which the aluminium on the carbon pencil rests; '10, the electrolyte three copper plugs riveted through the copper cover to hold the cover in place; a, a thumb-screw projecting above the cover as a litter and under the cover as a fourth plug; E, beeswaxcoating on the surface of the vessel; F, beeswax coating on the surface of thcearbon pencil.

To carry my invention into cilfect, I use as the negative electrode a porous. gas-coke-ear bou cylindrical cup iive and one-half inches high by five inches diameter, left externally exposed to the air. The inside of the cup is four and one-half inches deep by three inches diameter, leaving the walls of the cup one. inch thick. The inner bottom and about one inch in depth on the sides of the inner bottom of the cup is covered with a thin layer-of paraffin, forming an insulating-receptaele for a small quantity of quicksilver, which serves upon.

to amalgamate the aluminium. Thetopof the cup has a small elevation,through which a binding-screw is placed to attach to the conducting-wire. The external bottom of the cup is provided withthree small rubber kn obs I mit a rubber ring.

In order to leave the carbon vessel porous, so

I that the fluid may permeate the carbon walls without passing through onto the surface, I

polish its external surface by first heating the cup, and then while hot rub over the surface asma-ll quantityof beeswax. This suificiently closest-he pores to prevent the liquid from .I coming on to the surface and renders the surface pleasing tosight and clean to handle.

For the electrolyte I use a mixture ofcarbonate of potash and kerosene-oil.

l'leretofore in my application for Letters Patent for improvement in Serial No. 610,202, filed October a7, 1896, I have described and claimed all of the abovedescribed cell except the positive electrode.

Through the center of the cover there is an opening to.ad-

Through this ring the positive electrode, a carbon-aluminium. peneil, rests insulated from the copper cover.

galvanic batteries,-

My object in desiring a cell with a carbonaluininium or carbon-zinc electrode is as follows: I have found that with a zinc pencil there is always a portioii of the pencil that I is necessarily wasted, as well as the bindingserew of the zinc, whereas a small piece of zinc ntay be attached to the immersed end of the carbon pencil and entirely consumed without detriment to the force of the cell, and the carbon nitely. In the case of a number of cells together the dissolved zine lorms zincate of potassium in a few days and'evcntually deteriorates-the battery, but with one or two cells used as a local battery and with considerable external resistance, about twenty ohms, it is quite constant for many days. In this manner it is very desirable, being neat, clean, and inexpensive. \Vith aluminium, sodium aluminate forms and doesnotdeterioratc the battery like the dissolved zinc. I

The carbonate-ot-potash solution acts more pencil may be used indefi-- fibml'im thread cu: 10 5M ends the carbon.

Fful tlw'u. K screwed into the energetically onahu'niniuni than on zinc. Consequentl y the out-putis somewhat greater than withthe zine.- It is not apparently so .clean 'astliezinc element; --but I find that,ali-,

though the electrolyte has a muddy 'appear-' ancefrom the constant commotion of the fluid,

when. thealumininm is a small piece, an ounce orless, connected to the carbon pencil and im'- mersed severalinchesbelow'the surface'of the fluid the precil'iitated matter barely reaches the surface and is there dissolved.

T'o on: em! with. than a thu nib-screw is 11L [1 fixd'ffl'l'hegonnfidingwire. To the at rend ascfevflamgpt-thehead, is passed 8 a hole inthQ-aluminium and PM: against carbon.

o By est '& Wthraqsghthe aluminium a numbergnall pleats may be placed on the 5 '8", 040.5 pure-Min waste.

To re ort: the? m7 er" of. CaiJmullO of potash at done gallon of water and boil. \Vhile boiling, stir in one-halt gilloikerosene-oil. lloiliiveminutes. When cool, strain through a cotton cloth. glass vessels.

Place in five or six grams) in the cup.

ail unfit the aluminium lo one pound a small quantity of mercury (not exceeding Fill the cup to within an inch of the top with the solution "and place the carbon-aluminium or carbonzinc pencil through the rubber. ring. Let it rest in the mercury. Supply the loss by evaporation of the'solution, and when necessary add a piece or pieces oi. aluminium to the earbon; It is more convenient to have an extra carbon pencil for each cell;

Having fully described my invention, what Iclaim, and desire to secure by Letterslatcut, is

A galvai'iic-battery cell, com posed of a negative, porous, gas-coke, carbon, cylindrical, containing vessel, rendered sufficiently. dense on its external surface to prevent the passage onto its surface of an electrolytic iiuid, withv out destroying the porosity of the surface of the Vessel or its inner porosity and insulated I as described; and a positive electrode ofcarbon having pressed against or fastened to its lower end, a'section of an easily-oxidizable metal, notably aluminium or zinc, the positive electrode being .inin'iersed in an electrolyte, composed of a solution of carbonate of gpotash mixed with kerosene-oil, contained within the carbon vessel and resting in asmall quantity of quicksilver contained within an insulation in the bottom of the vessel, all substantially as described. v

Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 8th day of l eln'uary, A. D. 1897.

" JAMES suL'LY.

\Vitnesses:

l l.'l\[(liEAN,- L. ll. HOLLOWAY. 

